Washington Code 9A.40.100 – Trafficking
Current as of: 2023 | Check for updates
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(1) A person is guilty of trafficking in the first degree when:
Attorney's Note
Under the Washington Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| class A felony | up to life | up to $50,000 |
Terms Used In Washington Code 9A.40.100
- Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
- Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
- Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
- person: may be construed to include the United States, this state, or any state or territory, or any public or private corporation or limited liability company, as well as an individual. See Washington Code 1.16.080
(a) Such person:
(i) Recruits, harbors, transports, transfers, provides, obtains, buys, purchases, or receives by any means another person knowing, or in reckless disregard of the fact, (A) that force, fraud, or coercion as defined in RCW 9A.36.070 will be used to cause the person to engage in:
(I) Forced labor;
(II) Involuntary servitude;
(III) A sexually explicit act; or
(IV) A commercial sex act, or (B) that the person has not attained the age of eighteen years and is caused to engage in a sexually explicit act or a commercial sex act; or
(ii) Benefits financially or by receiving anything of value from participation in a venture that has engaged in acts set forth in (a)(i) of this subsection; and
(b) The acts or venture set forth in (a) of this subsection:
(i) Involve committing or attempting to commit kidnapping;
(ii) Involve a finding of sexual motivation under RCW 9.94A.835;
(iii) Involve the illegal harvesting or sale of human organs; or
(iv) Result in a death.
(2) Trafficking in the first degree is a class A felony.
(3)(a) A person is guilty of trafficking in the second degree when such person:
(i) Recruits, harbors, transports, transfers, provides, obtains, buys, purchases, or receives by any means another person knowing, or in reckless disregard of the fact, that force, fraud, or coercion as defined in RCW 9A.36.070 will be used to cause the person to engage in forced labor, involuntary servitude, a sexually explicit act, or a commercial sex act, or that the person has not attained the age of eighteen years and is caused to engage in a sexually explicit act or a commercial sex act; or
(ii) Benefits financially or by receiving anything of value from participation in a venture that has engaged in acts set forth in (a)(i) of this subsection.
(b) Trafficking in the second degree is a class A felony.
(4)(a) In any prosecution under this chapter in which the offense or degree of the offense depends on the victim’s age, it is not a defense that the perpetrator did not know the victim’s age, or that the perpetrator believed the victim to be older, as the case may be.
(b) A person who is either convicted or given a deferred sentence or a deferred prosecution or who has entered into a statutory or nonstatutory diversion agreement as a result of an arrest for a violation of a trafficking crime shall be assessed a ten thousand dollar fee.
(c) The court shall not reduce, waive, or suspend payment of all or part of the fee assessed in this section unless it finds, on the record, that the offender does not have the ability to pay the fee in which case it may reduce the fee by an amount up to two-thirds of the maximum allowable fee.
(d) Fees assessed under this section shall be collected by the clerk of the court and remitted to the treasurer of the county where the offense occurred for deposit in the county general fund, except in cases in which the offense occurred in a city or town that provides for its own law enforcement, in which case these amounts shall be remitted to the treasurer of the city or town for deposit in the general fund of the city or town. Revenue from the fees must be used for local efforts to reduce the commercial sale of sex including, but not limited to, increasing enforcement of commercial sex laws.
(i) At least fifty percent of the revenue from fees imposed under this section must be spent on prevention, including education programs for offenders, such as john school, and rehabilitative services, such as mental health and substance abuse counseling, parenting skills, training, housing relief, education, vocational training, drop-in centers, and employment counseling.
(ii) Revenues from these fees are not subject to the distribution requirements under RCW 3.50.100, 3.62.020, 3.62.040, 10.82.070, or 35.20.220.
(5) If the victim of any offense identified in this section is a minor, force, fraud, or coercion are not necessary elements of an offense and consent to the sexually explicit act or commercial sex act does not constitute a defense.
(6) For purposes of this section:
(a) “Commercial sex act” means any act of sexual contact or sexual intercourse, both as defined in chapter 9A.44 RCW, for which something of value is given or received by any person; and
(b) “Sexually explicit act” means a public, private, or live photographed, recorded, or videotaped act or show intended to arouse or satisfy the sexual desires or appeal to the prurient interests of patrons for which something of value is given or received.
[ 2017 c 126 § 1; 2014 c 188 § 1; 2013 c 302 § 6. Prior: 2012 c 144 § 2; 2012 c 134 § 1; 2011 c 111 § 1; 2003 c 267 § 1.]
NOTES:
Effective date—2013 c 302: See note following RCW 9.68A.090.